Jones County, South Dakota facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jones County
U.S. county
Freier Round Barn
Location within the U.S. state of South Dakota
South Dakota's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	South Dakota
Founded	1916 (created) January 15, 1917 (organized)
Named for	George Wallace Jones
Seat	Murdo
Largest city	Murdo
Area
• Total	971 sq mi (2,510 km2)
• Land	970 sq mi (2,500 km2)
• Water	1.2 sq mi (3 km2)  0.1%
Population  (2020)
• Total	917
• Estimate  (2023)	855
• Density	0.9444/sq mi (0.3646/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	At-large

Jones County is a county located in the state of South Dakota. A county is like a smaller region within a state. As of the 2020 census, about 917 people lived here. This makes it the county with the fewest people in South Dakota.

The main town, or county seat, is Murdo. Jones County was created in 1916 and officially started in 1917. It is the newest county in South Dakota. The county was named after Granville Whittington Jones. He was a clergyman and lawyer from Arkansas who moved to South Dakota.

Exploring Jones County's Land

The land in Jones County has rolling hills and is quite dry. Some areas are used for farming. The Bad River flows through the northwest part of the county. The White River forms the southern border.

The southern parts of the county have many small valleys and streams. These flow towards the White River. The land generally slopes down towards the northeast. The highest point is about 2,444 feet (745 meters) above sea level. The county covers a total area of 971 square miles (2,515 square kilometers). Most of this is land, with only a small amount of water.

Time Zones in South Dakota

South Dakota has two different time zones. The eastern part of the state uses Central Time. The western part uses Mountain Time. Jones County is one of the counties that observes Central Time.

Main Roads and Highways

Two important highways pass through Jones County:

• Interstate 90
• U.S. Highway 83

Neighboring Counties

Jones County shares borders with several other counties:

Protected Natural Areas

Jones County is home to some protected areas:

• Buxcel State Game Production Area
• Part of the Fort Pierre National Grassland

Lakes and Reservoirs

• Sheriff Reservoir

People of Jones County

The population of Jones County has changed over the years. The numbers above show how many people lived there during different census counts.

What the 2020 Census Shows

In 2020, there were 917 people living in Jones County. There were 399 households and 245 families. The population density was about 0.9 people per square mile. This means there aren't many people living in a large area. There were also 504 housing units in the county.

What the 2010 Census Showed

In 2010, there were 1,006 people living in the county. The population density was about 1.0 person per square mile. Most people in the county were white (95.6%). About 2.0% were American Indian. People from two or more races made up 1.9%. About 1.3% of the population was of Hispanic or Latino origin.

Many people in Jones County have ancestors from Europe. In 2010, the largest ancestry groups were German, Irish, and Norwegian.

Towns and Communities

Jones County has several towns and communities:

City

• Murdo (This is the county seat)

Town

• Draper

Census-designated place

• Okaton

Unincorporated community

• Capa

Townships

Townships are small local government areas. Jones County has these townships:

Unorganized territories

These are areas that do not have their own local government.

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Jones (Dakota del Sur) para niños